Perfect Hasselback Squash in 4 Steps

You are sitting in the kitchen, looking at a pumpkin that you have on the table, the one that you were looking at all week in your kitchen and you ask yourself: “what do I do with this?” Well, get ready to stop thinking and expand your repertoire of recipes with pumpkin.

Welcome and welcome to Paulina Kitchen! Today we are going to see how transform a simple pumpkin into a rock star, worthy of a standing ovation. And no, I’m not exaggerating. I’m going to show you how to prepare one calabaza hasselback original, which is not only delicious, but also visually beautiful.

This recipe has everything, so much so that in the middle we discover an unexpected romance between the pumpkin and lemon that will change your life, or at least, your way of seeing flavor combinations with pumpkin.

About Hasselback Squash

This is an especially easy and delicious recipe, which combines the natural sweetness of violin pumpkin with the lemon acidity and a touch of spiciness to create a feast of flavors in your kitchen and in your mouth. So get ready to cook something that will make you forget that you ever underestimated pumpkin.

Recipe with Violin Pumpkin, the chosen one

Before delving fully into this dish, let’s talk a little about the star of the day: the violin pumpkin. This is a type of pumpkin, which is also known as butternut squash. It’s not your typical Halloween pumpkin, with its scary face and empty inside (like your ex, but that’s another topic).

• The fiddle pumpkin has a stylized shapea soft leather and an interior that is pure orange gold. Sweet, smooth, and with a very versatile flavor.

This variety of pumpkin is perfect for certain dishes due to its elongated shape, its dense meat, soft texture and sweet flavormake it a favorite for both savory and sweet dishes. Examples:

Fiddler squash is not only a star ingredient among recipes with pumpkin most popular, but it is also one of the most versatile in the kitchen. Do you want a puree? There it is. Do you prefer a soup? The fiddle gourd makes this possible.

Preparing Hasselback Squash with Patience

Let’s start with the basics. For this hasselback squash recipeyou will need very few ingredients, already write down a violin pumpkin on the list. The ingredients are very few:

• Pumpkin
• Ginger 🫚
• Garlic (or better garlic paste) 🧄
• Lemon juice 🍋

Once you have your pumpkin, the first step is to cut it into thin slices, without going through it completely.

This is where the sushi sticks trick: The idea is to place two sushi sticks on the sides of the pumpkin and cut the pumpkin into slices. The sticks will help you prevent the knife from reaching the end, so the pumpkin will remain intact while it cooks, giving it a perfect texture. Illustrative photo:

An unexpected romance: pumpkin and lemon

If I tell you to close your eyes and imagine… the softness sweet pumpkinmeeting the lemon acidity on the same plate. Sounds a little strange, doesn’t it? Like a romantic movie couple where opposites attract.

Let me promise you that when these two flavors come together on a plate, something magical happens. The hasselback squash recipe It is proof that you should not close yourself off to new and innovative flavors, because they can be extraordinary.

The violin pumpkinalso known as butternuthas a subtle sweetness and a smooth texture that make it perfect for this type of preparation. The lemon, on the other hand, adds that acidic touch necessary to balance the richness of the pumpkin, this duo will give us a dish that is anything but boring.

2 Tips for the hasselback squash recipe: because we all need help

In this recipe we use garlic and ginger paste, ingredients that you may hesitate to get, so let’s talk about two little tricks so you don’t think about it anymore.

• The first trick is garlic paste. Yes, in general avoid using garlic because you end up with your hands smelling like garlic for days. The solution is to prepare a good amount of garlic paste at once and freeze it in small portions. Thus, every time you need a touch of flavor in your recipes, it will only be a matter of defrosting what is necessary.
• Trick 2, always fresh ginger. It has happened to all of us at some point, buying a whole ginger to use a little in a recipe and then it is forgotten in the refrigerator until it looks like a fossil. Avoid waste. Cut the ginger into slices and freeze it. This way, you will always have fresh ginger on hand; Just take a slice and use it right away.

The sauce from heaven for your hasselback squash

Now let’s prepare a special sauce for pumpkinand please what sauce! It is what takes this dish from good to spectacular.

1. Start with a couple of tablespoons of cream cheese. You can choose the cream cheese you like the most, even a vegan cream.
2. To this we add peanut paste or any other nuts you have.
3. The final touch is a few drops of lemon juice for that acidic contrast that perfectly complements the sweetness of the pumpkin.
4. Mix well until you obtain a smooth cream.

And if you have good taste, now you add a touch of spiciness, why not add a little spiciness to life? always welcome.

The power of pumpkin and lemon: an acid lover

Now, let’s talk about the lemon. That citrus that we sometimes overlook, but that has the power to elevate any dish to unimaginable levels. In this Hasselback squash recipe, the lemon is the acid lover who contrasts perfectly with the fiddle gourd sweetness.

It’s that unexpected touch that makes you frown at first, but then you realize you couldn’t live without it.

We already talked about fiddleback squash, lemon, and how this Hasselback squash recipe can change your life (or at least, your dinner). And that’s it, we leave you with the recipe and the video of this recipe, what a moment. Bye.

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Hasselback Squash Recipe

Yield: 4 servings
Preparation time: 65 minutes

Ingredients

• ½ Violin Pumpkin (approximately 1 kg)
• 1 clove of garlic (or 1 teaspoon garlic paste)
• 1 teaspoon fresh ginger (or ginger paste)
• 1/2 teaspoon chilli or chili flakes
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 2 tablespoons cream cheese (can be light or vegan)
• 1 tablespoon of peanut paste or other dried fruit (hazelnut paste, almond, etc.)
• Chopped fresh parsley
• Lemon zest to decorate
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• Go out to taste
• Freshly ground black pepper (optional)

How to Make Hasselback Squash in 5 Simple Steps

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Place the pumpkin between two sticks (like sushi sticks) and make thin cuts lengthwise without reaching the bottom, using the sticks as a stop. Place the squash on a baking sheet, drizzle the top with olive oil and season with salt. Bake for 40-45 minutes until tender but still firm.
2. While the pumpkin is baking, prepare the pasta: heat a frying pan over medium heat with a little olive oil. Add the chopped garlic and ginger, along with the chilli.
3. Cook briefly until the garlic is barely golden, avoiding burning. Add the lemon juice and remove from heat.
4. Mix the cream cheese with the peanut paste until you obtain a smooth consistency. This step is optional, but adds a creamy, flavorful contrast to the dish.
5. Remove the pumpkin from the oven and let it cool slightly. Place a layer of the cream cheese spread on the base of a plate and place the pumpkin on top. Drizzle with the garlic, ginger and lemon dressing. Garnish with fresh parsley and lemon zest. Serve immediately.